Dispenser for collapsible containers with hydraulic actuation

ABSTRACT

A dispenser for dispensing predetermined amounts of toothpaste or other material from a collapsible tube operates by subjecting the tube to hydraulic pressure thereby to squeeze the tube. The dispenser comprises a housing (10) having a first chamber (11) to hold the tube, a removable cap (18) formed with an opening from which the nozzle of the tube projects, a second chamber (12) to hold a reservoir of liquid and a slidable cap (31) movable by a spring (35) to cause a piston (30) to draw liquid from the reservoir into a pump chamber (40) through a one-way valve (28) and movable manually to cause the piston to force liquid from the pump chamber through a one-way valve (27) into the first chamber which is already filled with liquid, thereby to squeeze the tube.

DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

This invention relates to a dispenser for dispensing predeterminedamounts of a liquid or a soft extrudable material.

In particular, the invention is concerned with a dispenser of the kind,hereinafter referred to as the kind specified, which is adapted to holda collapsible or deformable container which contains a liquid or a softextrudable material and has a nozzle through which material can bedischarged by squeezing the container, the dispenser being operable tosqueeze the container to dispense predetermined amounts of liquid ormaterial.

The dispenser of the invention has been devised for dispensingtoothpaste from a container in the form of a collapsible tube which isclosed at one end and has a discharge nozzle at its other end, and thefollowing description will therefore be confined to this application ofthe invention. However, it is to be understood that there is nolimitation in this regard since the dispenser may be used to dispenseother soft extrudable materials such, for example, as grease, sealingcompound and adhesive as well as liquids such, for example, as liquidsoap.

According to the invention there is provided a dispenser of the kindspecified which is operable to dispense a liquid or a soft extrudablematerial from a container held by the dispenser, by subjecting thecontainer to hydraulic pressure thereby to squeeze the container.

The dispenser preferably comprises a housing defining a chamber toreceive the container, the chamber having an opening for the dischargeof liquid or material from the nozzle of the container and beingconnected to means operable to supply hydraulic fluid under pressure tothe chamber. These means preferably comprise a reservoir of hydraulicfluid and a piston operable to force fluid from the reservoir into thechamber.

The dispenser may be designed for mounting in a fixed position, forexample on a wall, or it may be hand-held.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with referenceto the accompanying drawing which is a vertical section, partly cutaway, of one form of dispenser embodying the invention.

The dispenser illustrated in the drawing has been designed fordispensing predetermined amounts of toothpaste from a collapsible tube Twhich is closed at one end E and has a nozzle N at its other end throughwhich toothpaste can be discharged by squeezing the tube. The nozzle isscrew-threaded to receive a closure cap (not shown) which is removedbefore the tube is placed in the dispenser.

The dispenser comprises an elongate, cylindrical housing 10 formed toprovide a chamber 11 at one end in which the tube is mounted, and achamber 12 at the other end to contain a reservoir of water, the twochambers being separated by a partition 13 formed with two bores 14, 15.

The housing 10 is provided with a mounting plate 16 enabling thedispenser to be mounted in a vertical position, as shown in the drawing,on, for example, a wall in a bathroom, the plate being fixed to the wallby, for example, adhesive or screws. The housing 10 is provided with alongitudinally extending tongue 17 of T shape in cross-section, the limbof the tongue being connected to the housing and the cross-piece beingengaged in a longitudinally extending, complementarily shaped grooveformed in the mounting plate. The groove is open at its upper end toenable the lower end of the tongue to be engaged in it whereupon thetongue is slid downwardly into position, the lower end of the groovebeing closed to provide a stop for the lower end of the tongue. Thelower end of the tongue is tapered and the lower part of the groove issimilarly shaped so that the tongue becomes a tight fit in the groovewhen it reaches the end of its downwards movement. The mounting platemay be formed to hold a tumbler and tooth brushes.

The lower end of the housing is in the form of a screw-threaded cap 18formed with a central opening through which the nozzle N of the tube Textends, the opening being provided with an annular seal 19 for sealingengagement with the nozzle so as to prevent water escaping from thechamber 11 through the opening.

A lever 20 is pivotally mounted on the mounting plate 16 and carries acup 21 and a closure element 22. The lever is movable between a closedposition as shown in the drawing in which the closure element 22 closesthe orifice of the nozzle N and the cup 21 encloses the nozzle, and anopen position in which it is clear of the nozzle so that a quantity oftoothpaste can be discharged from the nozzle on to a tooth brush. Thelever is held in each position by a spring or other means (not shown)and it has a finger piece at its free end enabling it to be flipped fromone position to the other. In a modification the lever 20 is mounted onthe housing.

The dispenser is fitted with an initially separate pump unit 23comprising a body 24 having two cylindrical portions 25 and 26containing one-way valves 27 and 28 respectively, and a furthercylindrical portion 29 which forms a cylinder for a piston 30 formedintegrally with a cap 31 mounted for vertical sliding movement on theupper end of the housing 10. The piston is provided at its lower endwith a sealing element 32 in sealing engagement with the cylinder. Thecap 31 is guided in its vertical movement by two or more projections 33provided on the cap at a regular circumferential spacing, theprojections being engaged in vertical grooves formed in the upper partof the housing.

The cap 31 is movable between a lower position, as shown in the drawing,and an upper position the limit of which is determined by abutment ofthe projections 33 with stops 34 provided at the upper ends of thegrooves in the housing. The cap is urged towards its upper position by aspring 35 interposed between the top of the cap and an annularprojection 36 formed inside the housing. The housing is formed at thelower ends of the grooves with shallow bayonet slots with which theprojections 33 can be engaged by turning the cap 31 to lock the cap inits lower position.

The cap 31 is formed with an opening 37 to facilitate filling of thechamber 12 with water. This opening may be provided with a removableclosure.

The pump unit 24 is mounted in the reservoir chamber 12 with itscylindrical portion 25 extending into the bore 14. The lower end of avent pipe 38 the upper end of which communicates with the interior ofthe chamber, extends into the bore 15 and contains a one-way valve 39.The portion 25, the pipe 38 and the bores 14, 15 may be screw threadedor the portion and the pipe may be a friction fit in their respectivebores.

The dispenser is arranged to operate as follows.

To prepare the dispenser for use, the housing 10 is detached from themounting plate 16 and the cap 18 is removed. The cap is fitted to thetube by screwing the nozzle of the tube into the seal 19 until theshoulder around the nozzle abuts the seal. If necessary a plug may beinserted into the nozzle to prevent toothpaste escaping from the tubeduring fitting of the tube. The tube is then inserted into the chamber11 and the cap is screwed tightly onto the housing 10, clamping asealing ring 41 between the cap and the housing. The screw thread of thecap is a multi-start thread which affords strength and requires onlyminimum turning of the cap so that the cap can be easily removed andrefitted. The external circumferential surface of the cap is knurled orribbed to facilitate turning of the cap. The housing 10 is then securedto the mounting plate 16 and the lever 20 is moved to its closedposition.

The cap 31 is locked in its lower position and the chamber 12 is thenfilled with water through the opening 37 to a level just beneath theupper end of the pipe 38. During filling, water flows into the chamber11 via valves 28 and 27 and air is vented from the chamber through thevalve 39 and the pipe 38. A small quantity of water also flows into apump chamber 40 of a predetermined volume provided in the pump unit 23.

The top of the chamber 11 is domed with its highest point at the bore 15to ensure that all the air is expelled from the chamber and no airbubbles are formed which could affect the hydraulic pressure.

When the user requires to dispense a predetermined quantity oftoothpaste, he or she flips the lever 20 to its open position and simplydepresses the cap 31 against the action of the spring 35, the cap havingpreviously been released from its locked lower position. The resultantdownward movement of the piston 30 in its cylinder 29 in performance ofone stroke forces the quantity of water in the pump chamber 40 throughthe valve 27 into the chamber 11. The hydraulic pressure in the chamber11 is therefore increased and this has the effect of squeezing the tubeT to cause an amount of toothpaste to be discharged from the nozzle N.The valve 39 prevents water escaping from the chamber 11 into the ventpipe 38. The hydraulic pressure in the chamber 11 acting on the tubealso presses the tube into sealing engagement with the seal 19.

The cap 31 automatically returns to its upper position under the actionof the spring 35 and as the piston 30 moves upwardly in performance ofthe other stroke, it draws more water from the reservoir 12 through thevalve 28 into the pump chamber 40 ready for the next operative storke.The cap therefore operates as a manually operable plunger. The valve 27prevents water being drawn from the chamber 11.

It has been found that successive operations of the dispenser result inthe tube T being collapsed gradually in a direction from its closed endE towards the nozzle N. One advantage of the invention is that the totalamount of toothpaste extruded from the tube by the dispenser is greaterthan the amount which would usually be extruded if the tube were simplysqueezed by hand, and in tests it has been found that only a smallamount of toothpaste remains in the nozzle. As compared with thisconventional way in which a tube of toothpaste is used, there is asaving of time in that it is not necessary to pick up the tube, removeits screw cap, squeeze the tube and then replace the cap whenevertoothpaste is required. The dispenser also avoids the annoyance causedby a tube of toothpaste leaking or its cap being left off, resulting ina mess in the wash-hand basin. The dispenser is hygenic and economicalsince it may be designed to hold a large tube of toothpaste. The noveltyof using the dispenser will encourage children to clean their teeth.

The dispenser is of a simple and inexpensive design. Its component partsmay be moulded of a suitable plastics material.

Of particular importance to the suppliers of toothpaste is that thedispenser can be used with tubes made of plastics materials instead ofmetal tubes as are usually provided, plastics tubes being cheaper thanmetal tubes.

What is claimed is:
 1. A dispenser having a housing adapted to hold adeformable container which contains an extrudable material and has anozzle through which said material can be discharged by squeezing thecontainer, the dispenser being operable to squeeze the container todischarge a predetermined amount of material wherein the housing iselongate and has a longitudinal axis and defines first and secondchambers which are disposed longitudinally adjacent to each other andare separated by adjacent end walls, the first chamber being arranged toreceive the container and having an opening at the end thereof distantfrom the second chamber for discharge of the material from the nozzle ofthe container, the second chamber providing a reservoir for hydraulicfluid and there being a pump, comprising a piston slidable in a pumpchamber, disposed in the housing and operable to pump hydraulic fluidfrom the second chamber into the first chamber, the pump being operableby a plunger slidably mounted on the housing, at the end thereof distantfrom the first chamber, for movement parallel to the longitudinal axisof the housing.
 2. A dispenser as claimed in claim 1 wherein the pump isdisposed within the housing adjacent to the adjacent end walls of thefirst and second chambers.
 3. A dispenser as claimed in claim 2 whereinthe pump is substantially disposed within the second chamber at the endthereof adjacent to the first chamber.
 4. A dispenser as claimed inclaim 1 wherein the piston is arranged on one stroke to draw fluid fromthe second chamber into the pump chamber which is of a predeterminedvolume and on the other stroke to force liquid from this pump chamberinto the first chamber.
 5. A dispenser as claimed in claim 4 wherein thepump chamber communicates with the first and second chambers through twoone-way valves which respectively prevent fluid being drawn from thefirst chamber during said one stroke of the piston and prevent fluidbeing forced into the second chamber during said other stroke.
 6. Adispenser as claimed in claim 4 wherein the piston is connected to theplunger, the plunger being movable manually to cause the piston toperform its said other stroke and being movable by spring means to causethe piston to perform its said one stroke.
 7. A dispenser as claimed inclaim 6 wherein the plunger is in the form of a cap having projectionsengaged in grooves in the housing to guide the cap for sliding movementrelative to the housing, means being provided to secure the cap in aposition corresponding to the end of its said second stroke.
 8. Adispenser as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first chamber is providedwith a vent for the expulsion of air from the chamber during filling ofthe latter with hydraulic fluid.
 9. A dispenser as claimed in claim 1wherein the opening of the chamber to receive the container is providedwith a seal for sealing engagement with a nozzle of the container.
 10. Adispenser as claimed in claim 1 which is provided with a closure elementmovable between a position in which it closes the nozzle of thecontainer and a position in which it is clear of the nozzle to permitliquid or material to be discharged from the nozzle.
 11. A dispenser asclaimed in claim 1 wherein the opening of the chamber to receive thecontainer is formed in a cap which is mounted on the housing and isremovable from the latter to facilitate insertion of a container intothe said chamber.
 12. A dispenser as claimed in claim 8 wherein thepiston is arranged on one stroke to draw fluid from the second chamberinto the pump chamber which is of a predetermined volume and on theother stroke to force liquid from this pump chamber into the firstchamber, the pump chamber communicating with the first and secondchambers through two one-way valves and which respectively prevent fluidbeing drawn from the first chamber during said one stroke of the pistonand prevent fluid being forced into the second chamber during said otherstroke, the housing being provided with a transversely extendingpartition intermediate the ends of the housing to define said adjacentend walls of the first and second chambers, wherein the partition isformed with two bores one of which receives one end of a vent pipeextending into the second chamber and providing said vent for the firstchamber and the other of which receives a part of a pump unit whichdefines the pump chamber, houses the one-way valves and is formed toprovide a cylinder in which the piston is slidably mounted.
 13. Adispenser as claimed in claim 1 wherein the second chamber is providedat the end thereof distant from the first chamber with an opening forthe introduction of hydraulic fluid.
 14. A dispenser as claimed in claim13 wherein the opening is provided in the plunger.